False Ceilings

Pique

Hi All,

Following on from another thread of mine.
My mam lives in an old stone built farmhouse.
Upstairs has very high ceilings (like a bloody cathedral!) and the place is a pain to heat.

What do people think of getting someone in to install false ceilings with good insulation (current attic insulation is c.25 years old so prob of negligible effectiveness)? Is it a good first step?

Cheers,

PK.

RKQ

Does the ceiling follor the line of the roof?
Are there timbers truss or purlins exposed?

If its an old school house with real cathedral ceilings, kingpost truss & exposed timber purlins, then its worth keeping these beautiful features.

It would be possible to insulate between the rafters & below the rafters while still showing the exposed timber trusses & purlins.

Pique

RKQ wrote: »

Does the ceiling follor the line of the roof? YES
Are there timbers truss or purlins exposed? NO

If its an old school house with real cathedral ceilings, kingpost truss & exposed timber purlins, then its worth keeping these beautiful features. I agree, not the case here though, my description of it as 'cathedral' was a bit tongue in cheek.

The ceiling is about 15-20 feet high in the central 50% and I suspect that the insulation above that is pretty poor. I would like to get a false ceiling to about 12 feet and have a decent level of insulation at that point.
Shouldn't be too big a job...should it ? have you come across this kinda thing before ?

Alpha10

It could be easily done but i don't think it would be cheap. The easiest way to do it is an mf (metal fabricated) ceiling. It's basically metal studs fixed to the new height and suspended with wire from the existing rafters and then slabbed with plasterboard. You could also put in timber joists and slab them (depending on the width of the rooms).

RKQ

Pique wrote: »

I would like to get a false ceiling to about 12 feet and have a decent level of insulation at that point.
Shouldn't be too big a job...should it ? have you come across this kinda thing before ?

Sounds simple enough to install new horizontal ceiling joists and slab & skim new ceiling. Screw fix new joist to rafters to prevent damage to slate roof.

Its not a very big job but it could be messy. Span of new ceiling will need professional advice. Try to install at least 300mm fibre glass over new ceiling & upgrade between rafters if possible.

A MF suspended ceiling is worth considering.

Poor Uncle Tom

Pique wrote: »

The ceiling is about 15-20 feet high in the central 50% and I suspect that the insulation above that is pretty poor. I would like to get a false ceiling to about 12 feet and have a decent level of insulation at that point.
Shouldn't be too big a job...should it ? have you come across this kinda thing before ?

Pique, the following is taken from the Forum Charter:

Do not reply to a post by inserting text within the quoted post.

In post No.3 you did just that.

Please read the Forum Charter before posting again.

Ordinary man

Alpha10 wrote: »

It could be easily done but i don't think it would be cheap. The easiest way to do it is an mf (metal fabricated) ceiling. It's basically metal studs fixed to the new height and suspended with wire from the existing rafters and then slabbed with plasterboard. You could also put in timber joists and slab them (depending on the width of the rooms).

If you get any trademan that recommend hanging a mf ceiling with WIRE, throw him out of your house as fast as possible. Wire will hold the ceiling but won't have any resistance to the ceiling lifting. It has been commonly used in some parts of the country and will cause problems later. Flat strap will be the same.

mfceiling

Ordinary man wrote: »

If you get any trademan that recommend hanging a mf ceiling with WIRE, throw him out of your house as fast as possible. Wire will hold the ceiling but won't have any resistance to the ceiling lifting. It has been commonly used in some parts of the country and will cause problems later. Flat strap will be the same.

+1^^

Should be hung with the proper "hanging angle" with reduced distance between the hangers dependant on depth of ceiling. Wire is only used for "lay in grid" ceilings like you see in cafes, shops etc.

bluenose1956

I have a similar problem as the OP, except that my propoerty is fairly new. The architect designed what he described as a "cathedral" ceiling. The problem is twofold, firstly I am not sure the void between the ceiling and the underside of the roof covering is adequately insulated, and secondly it's a massive void to heat (made worse if my first suspicion is correct). Does anyone have first hand experience of a domestic MF ceiling, and an installer in the South Tipperary area who who give me advice and a quotation?